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ORGANIZATION 


OP    THE 


INDIANA    AND    ILLINOIS 


CENTRAL  RAILWAY  COMPAMy 


WITH    THE 


REPORT  OF  THE  ENGINEER, 


A.  B    CONDIT,  Esq. 


INDIANAPOLIS: 

PRINTED    BY    ELLIS    &    SPANN 
1853. 


ORGANIZATION 


INDIANA    AND    ILLINOIS 


CENTRAL  RAILWAY  COmWl 


WITH    THE 


I  REPORT  OF  THE  ENGINEER, 

s 

A.  B.  CONDIT,  Esq. 


INDIANAPOLIS: 

PRINTED    BY    ELLIS    &    SPANN. 
1853. 


Gv)'ioL^^ 


ORGANIZATION. 


At  a  meeting  of  tke  friends  of  the  proposed  Indiana  and  Illinois  Central 
Raihvay,  leading  from  Indianapolis  to  Springfield,  Illinois,  for  the  purpose 
of  organizing  a  company,  Gov.  Wright  was  elected  President,  and  Henry  G. 
Todd,  Secretary. 

On  motion  of  Judge  Roacli,  a  committee  was  appointed  to  prepare  articles 
of  association.  The  following  gentlemen  were  appointed,  viz:  Messrs.  H. 
Lane,  A.  L.  Roache,  J.  W.  L.  Matlock,  C.  C.  Nave,  and  Wm.  Sheats. 

"While  the  committee  were  engaged  on  the  duties  assigned  them,  the  meet- 
ing was  addressed  in  some  pertinent  remarks  by  Dr.  Ellis  and  Messrs.  Coffin, 
Puett,  and  Sheets. 

The  articles  of  association  as  presented  hy  the  committee,  and  amended  and 
adopted  by  the  meeting,  read  as  follows  : 

St.^te  of  Indiana,  to-vvit  : 

Be  it  known  that  the  undersigned  whose  respective  places  of  residence 
are  set  out  in  the  margin,  for  the  purpose  of  organizing  a  Company  for  the 
construction,  owning,  and  maintaining  a  contemplated  raihvay  hereinafter 
named :  in  pursuance  of  an  act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Indiana, 
entitled  "  An  act  to  provide  for  the  incorporation  of  Railroad  Companies," 
approved  May  11th,  1852,  do  hereby  each  for  himself  subscribe  for  the  num- 
ber of  shares  of  the  capital  stock  of  said  contemplated  railway  Company,  set 
opposite  our  respective  names  ;  such  subscriptions  to  be  payable  to  said  Com- 
pany at  such  times,  and  in  such  sums  as  the  Board  of  Directors  of  said 
Company  when  elected,  and  their  successors  in  office  may  from  time  to  time 
order,  direct,  and  require.  But  assessments  upon  the  capital  stock  of  such 
company  shall  not  be  made,  nor  be  payable  oftener  than  once  in  sixty  days, 
nor  more  than  ten  per  cent,  upon  the  amount  subscribed  at  any  one  assess- 
ment;  and  we  do  hereby  subscrilie  and  agree  to  the  following  articles  of 
association,  to-vvit: 

Article  1st.  The  name  and  style  of  the  corporation  shall  be  the  "Indiana 
and  Illinois  Central  Railway  Company." 

Art.  2d.  The  capital  stock  of  the  company  shall  be  two  millions  of  dol- 
lars, to  consist  of  forty  thousand  shares  of  fifty  dollars  each. 

Art.  3d.  The  eastern  terminus  of  said  road  shall  be  at  the  city  of  Indian- 
apolis, in  the  State  of  Indiana,  thence  as  nearly  in  a  western  direction  as  may 


be  found  practicable  and  convenient,  by  way,  or  within  half  a  mile  of  the 
towns  of  Danville,  Rockville,  and  Montezuma,  in  the  State  of  Indiana,  and 
Decatur  in  the  Slate  of  Illinois,  in  a  direction  leading  to  the  city  of  Spring- 
field in  the  said  State  of  Illinois.  But  that  said  road  shall  not  diverge  from  a 
straight  line  in  order  to  secure  conditional  stock,  and  passing  through  the 
following  counties  in  the  State  of  Indiana,  viz:  Marion,  Hendricks,  Putnam, 
Parke,  and  Vermillion. 

Art.  4th.  The  length  of  said  road  in  the  State  of  Indiana,  as  near  as  may 
be,  is  estimated  to  be  seventy-five  miles,  and  the  total  length  to  the  city  of 
Springfield  is  estimated  to  be  one  hundred  and  eighty-six  miles. 

Art.  5th.  The  number  of  Directors  to  manage  the  affairs  of  said  Com- 
pany shall  be  seven  ;  and  vve  hereby  declare  that  the  following  aie  the  names 
of  the  Directors  elected  by  us  from  our  own  number  to  constitute  the  first 
Board  of  Directors  of  said  Company,  to-wit : 

E.  W.  H.  Ellis  and  William  Sheets,  of  the  county  of  Marion  ;  Henry  G. 
Todd  and  Edmund  Clarke,  of  the  county  of  Hendricks  ;  Higgins  Lane,  of  the 
county  of  Putnam  ;  E.  M.  Benson  and  A.  L.  Roache,  of  the  county  of  Parke. 

In  witness  whereof,  we  have  hereunto  severally  set  our  names  as  parties  to 
the  above  articles  of  association,  and  subscribe  to  the  capital  stock  of  said  Com- 
pany, this  30th  day  of  December,  1852. 

The  following  resolutions  were  then  adopted  : 

Resolved,  That  books  be  opened  in  each  county  along  the  line  by  the  several 
IDirectors,  and  that  each  member  of  the  Company  be  requested  to  use  exertion 
ifor  the  increase  of  stock  in  their  respective  counties. 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  be  instructed  to  allow  8  per  cent,  on  all  stock  sub- 
scriptions prepaid  in  full,  and  7  per  cent,  on  all  other  stock  payments — to  be  paid 
in  stock  at  the  completion  of  the  road. 

Messrs.  Puett  and  Roache  were  appointed  a  committee  to  visit  the  city  of 
Springfield  and  solicit  the  co-operation  of  the  citizens  of  Illinois,  and  make  such 
preliminary  arrangements  as  may  be  thought  best  for  the  advancement  of  the 
enterprise. 

On  motion,  it  was  agreed  that  a  meeting  of  the  Stockholders  and  Directors  be 
appointed  to  take  place  at  Indianapolis,  on  Tuesday,  the  15th  of  February 
next,  at  two  o'clock,  in  the  Supreme  Court  room. 

On  motion,  the  meeting  adjourned. 

JOS.  A.  WRIGHT,  PresH. 

H.  G.  Todd,  Sec. 

E.  W.  H.  ELLIS,  of  Marion  county, 
WILLIAM  SHEETS,  o/  Marion  county, 
HENRY  G.  TODD,  of  Hendricks  county, 
EDMUND  CLARKE,  of  Hendricks  county, 
HIGGINS  LANE,  of  Putnam  coimty, 
E.  M.  BENSON,  of  Parke  county, 
A.  L.  ROACHE,  of  Parke  county. 
Directors  of  I.  &  I.  Central  Railway  Company. 
Jndianapoms,  January  17,  1853. 


ENGINEER'S    REPORT 


TO   IHE  BOARD  OF  DIUECTOKS  OF  THE 

INDIANA  AND  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILWAY  COMPANY. 


My  instructions  were  to  make  an  examination  and  survey  for  a 
railroad  from  Indianapolis  to  Springfield,  connecting  the  capitals  of 
the  two  States  by  an  air  line.  I  made  the  survey  of  the  Illinois 
portion  in  September  last.  On  arriving  at  Decatur,  Illinois,  with 
my  party,  I  found  the  road  from  Springfield  to  that  place,  36-^ 
miles  was  in  the  hands  of  the  "Naples  and  Decatur  Company," 
the  State  having  sold  its  interest  in  the  "  Northern  Cross  Railroad" 
to  that  company,  binding  them  to  complete  the  road  in  a  certain 
length  of  time,  and  obligating  them  to  expend  100,000  dollars  on 
the  work  previous  to  the  first  of  February,  1853.  The  first  seven 
miles  of  this  road  from  Springfield  east,  was  graded  ready  for  the 
superstructure,  including  the  masonry  for  crossing  Sangamon 
river  by  the  State.  From  Decatur  to  Springfield,  the  Sangamon 
river  runs  nearly  due  west,  appropriating  to  itself  the  locality  of 
our  air  line  and  forcing  us  to  look  up  some  other  route.  On  the 
south  side  the  route  is  impracticable,  being  a  very  broken  country 
with  two  extensive  tributaries  of  the  Sangamon  to  be  crossed,  and 
the  main  Sangamon  east  of  the  capital.  On  the  north  we  have 
only  the  North  Fork  of  the  Sangamon  to  cross  east  of  Decatur, 
and  from  thence  the  route  of  the  "Naples  and  Decatur  Railroad" 
is  over  a  level  prairie  country  to  Springfield,  crossing  the  main 
Sangamon  seven  miles  east  of  the  city  on  the  State  grade  and 
masonry. 

Decatur  itself  is  3.5  miles  north  of  our  air  line  :  from  thence 
east  we  diverge  south  of  east  crossing  "  North  Fork  of  the  San- 
gamon,"  two  miles  east  of  Decatur,   and  reaching  our  due  east 


line  to  Indianapolis  8.5  miles  from  Decatur.     From  the  Sangamon 
to  the  Wabash,   80  miles,  the  road  for  directness  of  alignment, 
easy   grades  and   cheapness   of    construction  cannot  probably   be 
surpassed.     We  cross  the  intermediate  streams  Kaskaskia,  Embar- 
rass and  Brouiilett's  creek,  with  a  grade  of  26  feet  to  the  mile,  and 
embankments  12  feet  high  ;  with  this  exception  the  grades  vary  from 
level  to  15  feet  per  mile,  and  cuts   and  fills   from  0  to  5  feet  in 
depth.     70  miles  of  this  distance  is  a  perfect  air  line  due  east  and 
west.    In  getting  a  crossing  of  the  Wabash  we  are  highly  favored  by 
nature.     The   Little   Raccoon   a   .stream   about  5  miles  in  length, 
coming:  in  from  the  west  in  our  course  with  a  valley  that  lets  us 
down  to  the  valley  of  the  Wabash  with  an  easy  grade  and  light 
work. 

On  the  east  side  of  the  Wabash  there  are  no  bluffs.     We  pass 
into  a  second  bottom  prairie  that  lies  above  high  water.     On  this 
second  bottom,  on   the  east  bank  of   the  river  at  our  crossing,  is 
situated  the  town  of  Montezuma,   "the  Wabash  and  Erie  Canal" 
running  along  the  west  side  between  it  and  the  river.     At  Leather- 
wood  creek,  3  miles  from  the  Wabash,  Ave  leave  the  prairie  bottom 
and  commence  gently  making  the   ascent  of  the  table  lands,  and 
attain  the  summit  at  Rockville   the  county  seat  of  Parke  county, 
Indiana,  8.5  miles  distant  from  the  Wabash.     From  Rockville  to 
the  county  line  east,  William's  creek,  and  Little  and  Big  Raccoon 
crossing  our  line  at  right  angles,  make  considerable  broken  coun- 
try, and  will  be  the  most  expensive  part  of  the  whole  line ;  from 
thence  to  Eel  river  in  Putnam  county,  the  country  is  quite  favora- 
ble, gently  undulating  and  level  with  occasional  small  branches ; 
from  Eel  river  to   Danville  the  county  seat  of  Hendricks  county, 
the  country  is  of  a  similar  character.     From  Danville  to  Indian- 
apolis, 20  miles,  the  upland  table  of  the  coixntry  is  very  level :  the 
main   expense  will  be  in  the  bridging  and    embankment  of    the 
several  stream^s,  the  three  White  Licks,  Abner's  creek,  two  Eagle 
creeks  and  White  river  at   Indianapolis.     The  following   are  dis- 
tances  to   different  points  from  Decatur  : 
Sangamon  river,         ......  2.       miles. 

Sangamon  timber,  east  side,  -----       8.8       " 

Little  Kaskaskia,        ------         14.20     *' 

Lake  Fork  of  Kaskaskia, 26.75     " 

Main  Kaskaskia,         ------         31.80     " 

Chicao-o  branch  of  Central  Illinois  Railroad,    -         -     36.40     " 
Scattering  Fork  of  Embarrass  river,    -         -         -         39.80     " 


Main  Embarrass,  -------  41.60  miles. 

New  Albany, 42.60  " 

Bushy  Fork  of  Embarrass,     -         ...         -  52.80  " 

Brouillett's  creek, 65.80  " 

State  line, -  76.20  " 

Wabash  river  and  Monte/Axma,    -         -          -         -  84.20  " 

Rockville,     --------  92.70  " 

Bainbridge, 115.40  " 

Danville, 130.60  " 

Indianapolis,  from  Central  Depot  to  Union  Depot,  150.10  " 

Total  distance  from  Springfield  to  Indianapolis,         -  186.60  " 

Grades. 

As  to  grades  on  the  Indiana  portion,  I  have  adopted  a  maximum 
grade  of  40  feet  per  mile.  By  increasing  the  cost  about  100,000 
dollars  the  grades  can  all  be  reduced  to  a  maximum  of  26  feet.  I 
recommend  to  the  company  to  incur  the  additional  expense  :  it  will 
be  the  cheapest  in  the  end.  They  Avill  not  only  save  it  in  the  wear 
of  track  and  machinery,  but  they  will  be  enabled  to  make  time, 
which  will  be  of  the  first  importance  to  this  road.  All  the  roads 
west  of  Indianapolis  and  south  of  yours,  have  grades  of  40  feet : 
they  are  compelled  by  the  broken  character  of  the  country  to 
adopt  them,  and  often  continuous  grades  of  this  character  for  3  miles 
and  over  at  a  time.  On  these  roads  26  miles  to  the  hour  will 
probably  be  the  highest  speed  they  can  attain.  With  our  road  an 
air  line,  three-fourths  of  the  distance  nearly  level  and  none  over 
26  feet  per  mile,  we  can  calculate  on  our  express  trains  making 
35  miles  an  hour,  enabling  us  to  put  our  passengers  in  St.  Louis 
ahead  of  any  other  route.  West  of  the  Wabash  the  maximum 
grades  are  26  feet  per  mile. 

Cost  of  the  road  from  Decatur  to  Indianapolis,  150  miles. 

Graduation,  masonry  and  bridging,           -         -         -  8498,897 
Iron,  chairs  and  spikes,  ballasting,  oak  ties,  and  lay- 
ing track,           - 1,110,000 

Engineering,  right  of  way,  and  officers'  salaries,        -  40,000 

Turn-outs,  machine  shops,  depots  and  water  stations,  80,000 

Machinery,  rolling  stock  and  equipments,           -         -  155,000 

81,883,897 


Total  cost  per  mile,  -         -         ^         .         ^         ^         $12,553  44 

Cost  per  mile  of  graduation,  masonry  and  bridging,     $3,325  ^ 

These  estimates  are  made  with  reference  to  the  present  increased 
prices  of  iron  and  labor.  Should  there  be  a  falling  off  in  prices 
the  cost  will  be  considerably  diminished  from  the  above  figures. 
The  remarkable  cheapness  of  this  road  may  appear  somewhat 
surprising,  and  when  it  is  known  too,  that  other  roads  crossing  the 
same  country  are  estimated  to  cost  much  more.  The  Terre  Haute 
and  Alton,  and  the  Terre  Haute  and  St.  Louis  roads  are 
estimated  at  18,000  and  20,000  dollars  per  mile.  I  account  for 
the  difference  in  this  way  :  the  same  streams  that  we  cross  where 
there  are  no  bluffs  or  hilly  country,  they  cross  low  down  nearer 
their  outlets,  where  they  make  large  depressions  in  the  surface  of 
the  country,  causing  heavy  grades  and  expensive  work.  The 
largest  portion  of  our  road  (the  84  miles  west  of  the  Wabash) 
being  of  this  cheap  c]jaracter,  makes  the  aggregate  low. 

Character  of  the  Country. 

From  Decatur,  east,  the  first  eight  miles  we  pass  through  tim- 
ber land,  and  from  thence  to  the  Wabash  it  is  a  prairie  country, 
and  the  timber  is  confined  to  the  margin  of  the  stream  before 
mentioned,  and  varying  from  one  to  two  miles  in  width.  We  were 
otten  within  one  or  two  miles  of  circular  isolated  groves,  some  of 
them  not  containing  more  than  an  acre,  and  others  two  or  three 
miles  in  diameter  ;  we  did  not  happen  to  pass  through  any  of 
these.  The  country  is  thickly  settled  on  these  streams  in  the  tim- 
ber, the  farms  extending  out  into  the  prairie  generally  about  two 
miles  on  each  side  ;  beyond  this,  the  prairie  is  in  a  state  of  nature. 

The  country  is  gently  undulating,  a  rich,  deep,  alluvial  prairie 
soil,  and  very  productive,  as  the  products  of  the  country  gave 
evidence.  There  are  no  swamp  or  poor,  unproductive  lands  the 
whole  length  of  the  line.  On  the  Wabash  the  timber  lands  are 
about  five  miles  in  width ;  on  the  east  side  we  pass  through  three 
miles  of  prairie ;  we  here  leave  the  last  of  the  prairie,  and  the 
country  loses  its  peculiar  prairie  nature  and  characteristics.  From 
the  State  line  to  Indianapolis,  through  the  counties  of  Vermillion, 
Parke,  Putnam,  Hendricks  and  Marion,  the  country  is  rich,  pro- 
ductive uplands  and  bottoms,  and  thickly  settled.  As  to  the  capa- 
bilities of  the  country  to  furnish  a  local  business  for  the  road,  it 


may  be  well  to  make  some  reference.  Besides  the  ordinary  com- 
merce of  carrying  off  the  agricultural  products  of  the  country^and 
transporting  merchandise,  the  transportation  of  lumber,  wood  and 
rails  from  the  heavy  timbered  country  of  Indiana  to  the  prairies  of 
Illinois  will  be  an  important  item  of  business.  To  settle  these 
prairies,  these  articles  must  be  brought  from  Indiana,  and  that  by 
said  road.  At  present,  the  only  method  is  the  tedious  transporta- 
tion by  teams.  In  going  to  Decatur,  I  met  as  many  as  fifteen 
teams  together  at  a  time,  going  to  Parke  county,  Indiana,  for  lumber 
for  building  purposes,  a  distance  of  ninety  miles. 

The  road  also  passes  tlivough  the  iron  and  coal  region  of  Parke 
and  Vermillion  counties.  The  transportation  of  coal  from  these 
beds  to  those  portions  of  Illinois  destitute  of  fuel  must  eventually 
furnish  to  the  road  an  extensive  traffic.  The  beds  of  iron  ore  are 
extensive  and  produce  a  superior  quality  of  iron.  In  making  my 
examination,  I  had  occasion  to  examine  the  geological  features  and 
character  of  this  bed  ;  it  is  about  thirty  miles  in  length,  extending 
up  and  down  on  both  sides  of  the  Wabash,  and  about  eight  miles 
in  width.  Our  road  makes  a  cut  through  this  bed  on  Leather- 
wood,  three  miles  east  of  the  Wabash,  a  good  locality  for  a  fur- 
nace, with  coal  in  the  immediate  proximity.  I  visited  the  only 
furnace  in  operation  in  Vermillion  county,  and  learned  from  the 
proprietor,  Hugh  Stewart,  that  they  manufactured  about  1,800 
tons  annually.  This  was  formerly  sent  to  Cincinnati,  but  is  now 
consumed  at  Terre  Haute,  Indianapolis  and  Lafayette,  in  the  man- 
ufacture of  hollow  ware,  railroad  chairs,  and  car  wheels.  With 
railroad  facilities  for  carrying  oft'  the  iron,  the  number  of  furnaces 
would  be  increased,  adding  largely  to  the  business  of  the  road. 

Its  connections  and  relative  position  lo  other  and  connecting 

roads. 

The  cities  of  the  seaboard,  Boston,  JS'ew  York,  Philadelphia, 
Washington  and  Baltimore,  each  projected  railroads  west^for  the 
trade  of  the  great  Mississippi  valley  and  the  Middle  and  Western 
States,  and  have  now  continuous  lines  connecting  through — Bos- 
ton and  New  York  by  way  of  the  "Buffalo  and  Albany  R.  R."  to 
Buffalo,  Dunkirk  and  Cleveland— New  York  alone  by  "New  York 
and  Erie  R.  R."  to  Dunkirk  and  Cleveland.  Philadelphia,  Wash- 
ington and  Baltimore  have  their  roads  completed  to  the  Ohio  at 
Pittsburgh  and  Wheeling,  making  four  great  trunk  roads  direct 

2 


10 

east  and  west  througli  the  States  of  New  York  and  Pennsylvania. 
Across  the  State  of  Ohio,  we  also  have  four  great  east  and  west 
trunk  roads. 

The  "Lake  shore  road,"  a  continuation  of  the  Boston  and  IST. 
Y.  roads  to  Cleveland,  and  from  thence  direct  to  Gallon  on  the 
west  side  of  the  State.  The  "Ohio  and  Pennsylvania  R.  R.," 
direct  from  Pittsburgh,  by  way  of  Wooster  and  Mansfield,  to  Gal- 
ion.     This  and  the  Lake  shore   unite  here  and   form  a  n-reat  east 

o 

and  west  trunk  road  direct  to  Indianapolis,  called  the  Indianapolis 
and  Bellefontaine  R.  R. 

From  Pittsburgh  to  Steubenville,  on  the  Ohio,  and  direct  to 
Newark  and  Columbus,  is  the  "Steubenville  and  Indiana  R.  R.," 
•and  also  from  Wheeling  direct  to  Columbus  is  the  "  Central  Ohio 
R.  R."  They  two  unite  and  form  a  direct  trunk  road  from  Colum- 
bus to  Indianapolis,  through  Springfield  and  Dayton,  and  the  Cen- 
tral Indiana  R.  R.  So  we  have  four  direct  trunk  east  and  Avest 
roads  through  New  York  and  Pennsylvania ;  four  through  the 
State  of  Ohio,  and  two  across  Eastern  Indiana,  converging  and 
coming  together  at  Indianapolis.  From  Indianapolis  west  there  is 
no  railroad.  The  centre  of  the  State  of  Illinois  and  its  capital  is 
yet  to  be  reached  by  railroad,  and  also  the  Mississippi  and  Mis- 
souri rivers.  From  their  capital  west,  they  have  their  system  of 
railroads  constructed  and  constructing,  converging  and  uniting  at 
that  point,  similar  to  the  capital  of  Indiana. 

The  Alton  and  Springfield  R.  R.,  72  miles  in  length,  is  finished, 
making,  with  20  miles  of  river  navigation,  a  direct  steam  connec- 
tion with  St.  Louis,  92  miles.  From  Springfield  to  Naples,  on  the 
Illinois  river,  52  miles,  the  road  is  finished,  and  mostly  graded  from 
Naples  to  Quincy,  on  the  Mississippi ;  from  thence  to  Palmyra,  Mo., 
this  road  connects  with  the  great  "Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  R.  R.," 
for  which  a  laraje  amount  of  government  lands  are  donated.  The 
stock  is  taken  to  build  a  road  direct  from  Naples  to  Hannibal,  40 
miles,  across  Pike  county.  From  Springfield  they  are  building  a 
road  to  Chicago,  through  Bloomington.  The  object  of  your  road 
is  to  connect  these  two  great  systems  of  railroads  east  of  Indian- 
apolis and  west  of  Springfield,  by  a  direct  line  from  one  capital  to 
the  other. 

By  reference  to  the  map,  it  will  be  seen  that  Wheeling,  Colum- 
bus, Indianapolis,  and  Springfield  are  on  the  same  parallel  of  lati- 
tude, and  Hannibal  and  St.  Joseph  nearly  so,  and  that  this  must 
eventually  be  the  great  trunk  railroad  through  the  centre  of  the 


11 

States  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  and  that  yours  is  the  only 
link  wanting  to  complete  the  chain  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Mis- 
souri, 1,350  miles,  and  that  every  portion  of  this  great  central 
thoroughfare  is  either  finished  or  being  rapidly  constructed,  except 
our  150  miles.  From  Indianapolis  there  is  no  railroad  leading 
west.  The  only  road  leading  in  a  Avesterly  direction  is  the  Indian- 
apolis and  Terre  Haute,  going  southwest  in  the  direction  of  St. 
Louis,  departing  from  our  line,  so  that  at  our  crossing  of  the  Wa- 
bash, 66  miles  west,  it  is  24  miles  south.  This  is  not  a  rival  road 
to  yours;  it  was  built  to  accommodate  another  section  of  country, 
and  another  line  of  travel.  At  Indianapolis  we  connect  with  roads 
south  and  southeast,  direct  to  Louisville,  Madison  and  Cincinnati, 
and  north  and  northwest  to  Peru  and  Lafayette,  on  the  Wabash, 
and  Alichigan  city,  on  Lake  Michigan.  Between  the  termini  of 
our  road  we  cross  and  connect  with  several  important  north  and 
south  roads.  First  at  Bainbridge,  in  Putnam  county,  we  cross  the 
"New  Albany  and  Salem  Railroad,"  extending  from  New  Albany  on 
the  Ohio  to  Michigan  City.  In  Parke  county  we  cross  the  "Evans- 
ville  and  Illinois  R.  R.,"  extending  from  Evansville  on  the  Ohio  to 
Crawfordsville  and  Lafayette.  In  Vermillion  county  we  cross  the 
"  Wabash  Valley  R.  R.,"  extending  from  Toledo  on  Lake  Erie  the 
whole  length  of  the  Wasbash  and  Erie  Canal  from  Toledo  to  Evans- 
ville, and  near  the  State  line  we  cross  the  "Lake  Erie,  Wabash  and 
St.  Louis  R.  R."  on  its  proposed  continuation  to  Paris,  111.  36.4 
miles  east  of  Decatur  we  cross  the  "Chicago  Branch  of  the  Illinois 
Central  R.  R.,"  giving  us  a  direct  connection  with  the  moutli  of  the 
Ohio  at  Carlo,  and  north  with  Chicago.  At  Decatur,  the  county  seat 
of  Macon  county,  we  connect  with  the  "Naples  and  Decatur  R.  R.,  ' 
giving  us  a  direct  connection  Avith  Springfield  and  also  with  the 
"  Illinois  Central  R.  R.,"  giving  a  direct  connection  with  Lasalle  on 
the  Illinois  river,  and  Galena,  on  the  Mississippi. 

A  road  like  this,  connecting  with  the  important  cities  of  Illinois 
by  long  and  direct  lines,  Chicago,  Galena,  Lasalle,  Springfield, 
Quincy,  Alton,  and  Cairo,  west  to  St.  Louis  and  St.  Joseph,  in 
Mo.,  north  with  Michigan  city,  Detroit  and  Toledo,  south  with 
Louisville  and  Cincinnati,  with  its  important  through  connections — 
these  with  its  remarkable  directness,  easy  grades,  and  cheap  con- 
struction, recommend  it  to  the  confidence  of  its  projectors  and 
friends.  However  much  it  may  interest  community  at  large,  it  is 
the  inhabitants,  towns  and  villages  along  the  immediate  locality  of 
the  road,    that   are   more  especially   interested    in  the   work.      It 


12 

passes  through  a  section  of  country  now  destitute  of  railroad  com- 
munication, more  particularly  the  towns  and  villages.  The  line 
in  its  course  takes  in  five  important  towns  of  from  600  to  800  in- 
habitants ;  three  of  them  county  seats.  Two  of  them,  Danville, 
in  Hendricks  county,  and  Rockville,  in  Parke  county,  are  without 
any  railroad  connection.  Decatur,  the  county  seat  of  Macon 
county,  Illinois,  is  more  fortunate,  having  two  railroad  connections  ; 
Bainbridge,  in  Putnam  connty,  though  not  a  county  seat,  is  a 
thriving,  business  place,  with  a  railroad  passing  through  it  north 
and  south.  Montezuma  is  quite  an  important  commercial  town, 
finely  located  on  the  Wabash  river  and  canal  ;  it  also  has  no  rail- 
road connections. 

The  census  statistics  show  an  ao^ffi-eofate  of  wealth  in  the  five 
counties  of  Indiana,  not  inferior,  for  the  same  distance,  to  any 
other  portion  of  the  State.  The  four  counties  of  Hendricks,  Put- 
nam, Parke  and  Vexmillion,  pay  one  fifteenth  of  the  taxes  of  the 
State.  Forty-five  miles  of  the  western  end  next  to  Springfield 
passes  through  the  oldest  and  best  settled  portion  of  the  State. 
The  Sangamon  co\intry  being  about  the  first  portion  of  the  State 
settled,  and  it  being  interior,  it  is  entirely  dependent  on  railroads 
for  its  commerce.  Owing  to  the  peculiar  locality  of  the  towns, 
they  all  being  on  ihe  same  line,  the  route  will  not  be  varied  from 
its  course  by  conditional  stock,  as  is  too  often  the  case  in  this  coun- 
try, neither  Avill  the  difference  in  the  conformation  of  the  country 
call  for  a  divergency  in  the  alignment :  and  in  closing  my  report,  I 
particularly  recommend  a  straight  line  and  low  grades. 

Most  of  the  works  in  this  State,  undertaken  at  an  early  day,  in 
the  incipiency  of  railroad  enterprise,  were  often  under  the  neces- 
sity of  diverging  the  line  for  conditional  stock,  or  to  obtain  a 
cheaper  locality  for  construction  at  the  expense  of  distance,  align- 
ment and  grades.  In  a  road  of  this  character  and  importance,  it 
would  be  poor  economy  to  increase  the  curvature,  distance  and 
grades  to  save  present  expenditure,  and  thereby  ultimately  depre- 
ciate the  value  of  the  road.  This  is  a  matter  of  the  greatest  im- 
portance, and  should  not  be  departed  from  for  any  minor  conside- 
rations. Yon  ai-e  building  a  road  that  is  to  be  forever  part  of  the 
great  thoroughfare  east  and  west,  through  the  centre  of  the  great 
and  growing  States  of  the  West,  and  it  is  important  that  it  should 
be  the  straightest  and  shortest  communication  that  can  ever  possi- 
bly be  made.  Not  only  in  justice  to  itself  should  it  be  thus,  but 
the  relation  it  bears  to  other   roads  requires  it.     This   constitutes 


13 

an  important  section  of  the  great  trunk  road  from  the  Atlantic  to 
the  Missouri,  and  eventually  to  be  continued  to  the  Pacific. 

East  of  the  Ohio  river  the  nature  of  the  country  is  such  that 
the  road  is  compelled  to  diverge  from  a  straight  line  ;  but  even 
then  in  spite  of  the  ruggedness  of  nature,  by  science,  skill,  money, 
energy,  and  perseverance,  surprising  results  have  been  attained, 
and  the  distance  is  now  traveled  from  Pittsburgh  to  Philadelphia 
in  eighteen  hours. 

The  four  great  States  of  the  West,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois  and 
Missouri,  present  a  far  different  feature,  with  a  surface  peculiarly 
adapted  to  railroad  construction,  thereby  enabling  the  projectors 
of  this  great  enterprise  to  attain  the  happiest  results  in  securing 
long  straight  lines  on  each  division  of  the  work.  The  distance 
from  Indianapolis  to  the  Mississippi  is  275  miles.  To  St.  Louis 
by  Avay  of  our  road  and  Springfield,  278  miles  ;  by  way  of  pro- 
posed Terre  Haute  and  St.  Louis  R.  R.,  242  miles  ;  by  Terre  Haute 
and  Alton,  266  miles  ;  by  our  line  to  State  line,  thence  by  Lake 
Erie,  Wabash,  and  St.  Louis  R.  R.,  to  Paris,  111.,  and  by  Terre 
Haute,  and  Alton  R.  R.  to  St.  Louis,  255  miles,  being  eleven  miles 
nearer  to  Alton  and  St.  Louis  than  b}'  Terre  Haute,  and  thence 
by  Terre  Haute  and  Alton  R.  R.,  Paris  being  distant  from  this 
88  miles  by  one  route,  and  99  by  the  other.  As  our  railroad 
friends  may  wish  to  correspond  and  send  documents  to  the  leading- 
railroad  men  and  friends  of  the  enterprise  along  the  line  in  Illinois, 
I  will  give  some  of  their  names  and  post  office  addresses. 

Hon.  Mr.  Prather,  E.  O.  Smith,  James  Shoaf,  Decatur.  Samuel 
Lester,  Adonis;  Gruell  Jones,  Hermitage  P.  0.  Samuel  Yarnell, 
James  H.  Bagley,  Wm.  Watson,  Upper  Embarrass  P.  0.  Enoch 
Howell,  Bushy  Fork  P.  0.  Mr.  Bayhes  and  Dr.  Malone,  Bloom- 
field.  Messrs.  Prather  and  Watson  are  State  representatives.  My 
thanks  are  due  to  many  of  these  gentlemen  for  their  kindness  and  at- 
tention in  furnishing  us  information,  pi'ovisions,  &c. 

AMZI  B.  CONDIT, 
Chief  Engineer  I.  <&  I.  C.  R.  R. 

Indianapolis,  Dec.  31,  1852. 


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